Cruising in London

I am so lucky to have friends like Zoe, who gets to travel as part of her profession. Another perk of the job is that she gets to add fun to her traveling adventures with a bit of fashion styling. I have always known Zoe to have a love for theater and fashion, so it was no surprise for me that she also enjoys styling herself and her friends as well, with her travel destinations as her impromptu backdrops. Here are some photos of Zoe's friend wearing our Pinangga hand-beaded embroidered scarves, as they cruise along London. These were shot during the last weeks prior to Spring in London. 

All neutrals with the Pinangga Scarf as the main accessory. 

Adding a beret hat to the ensemble.  

With Buckingham Palace as the backdrop to Zoe's stylish travel companion. 

Two looks. Can you spot the difference? :) 

It's great to see how our handmade products reach international destinations. It's as though I get to experience your travel destinations with you. I may not be there, but with our pieces, such as the Pinangga scarves, I am able to take in and share in the wonderful place that is London. Pinangga Bead Embroidery Scarves will soon be available at PALAMUTISHOP.COM

Photos and Styling by Zoe Alabanza
Email: zaveracruz@gmail.com
Keeping it real. -PJV

Whispers of the Seasons: Fall/Winter Handmade Collection

These statement pieces, along with vintage Palamuti designs, will be available on our website's relaunch on October 2014. We're currently making improvements  with a user-friendly e-commerce interface, as well as a whole new look, just in time before the season of gift giving begins. 

Maharlika 

For this new collection, I have decided to focus solely on bead embroidery for all our designs. The inspiration for these necklaces is a collective vision of the fall & winter seasons. I've incorporated our signature style to the seasons' motif,colours, and themes; taking  inspiration from a wide variety of sources, taking advantage of the aesthetic diversity present among things such as the  "Fleur De Lis", Autumn Leaves, Japanese Art, and Islamic Geometric Patterns. 

Maharlika 

Fall colors reminds me of royalty. "Maharlika" is the Tagalog word for royalty, and this design is my fashion vision for this season. I have three versions of this design to represent the different neckline types women are most likely to have. The key element that brings the design together is harmony of colours, with its curved patterns and stylized branches, to give it a royal setting.

Laya

This pieces is another rendition of the stylised branch. I decided to use the depth and versatility of cut beads in making these statement necklaces; adding semi-precious stones and acrylic crystals as accents. This interpretation of a stylised branch emphasises play with this year's colours.

Rariza

This Fall/Winter season we are all about long statement necklaces and geometric patterns. Using our core technique, bead embroidery, I had our beaders creat patterns alternating the use of cut beads and seed beads. The seed beads for this neckace gives the necklace the texture necessary to prevent it from looking flat. To round out the finish, we used aluminum silver plated chain, to fuse modernity and traditional techniques present in the design.

Old Rose

Flower concepts are a favorite theme in this year's collection, and I have designed several pieces inspired by the rose. I decided to make a rose statement necklace in black and gold. Unlike past flower inspired pieces that I have designed before, what sets this piece apart is the special focus on using texture to give depth to the petals. Our Palamuti Apprentice from a rural community in the Northern Philippines, Novie, took on this project as part of enhancing her skills in handmade bead embroidery.

Maximina

Maximina is our attempt to expand the possibilities of bead embroidery, most especially the use of cut beads. The idea for this collection was to minimize the use of stones, crystals and gem-like craft beads. I decided to focus on cut beads instead, to give it more sparkle. Generally, embellished necklaces are given an emphasis on dimension, by adding components with more volume. Cut beads, in comparison to seed beads, have a certain shimmering quality, which subtly adds glamor, despite its intended simplicity. We utilized this characteristic to improve the effect of beads, individually sewn by hand, to precisely match the shape of cut felt cloth. The flow of the stitched cut beads leaves no room for error, a very intrinsic element to the necklace's design.

Yuri

I am also inspired by concepts and designs from different foreign cultures. This necklace is a rendition of cherry blossoms in winter colors, a tribute to our fascination for Japanese art. We tried to give justice to the quintessential image of the Japanese cherry blossom with added depth and texture. I added raised seed beads to form delicate petals on the flowers.

Lagas

Autumn leaves are the very inspiration for this necklace. Most of all, our commitment to elevating our designs pushed us to experiment in other ways to stitch the seed beads that will create texture and depth to the leaves. Black and gold is the "must have" colour combination for accesorising this fall. Instead of sticking to the traditional gold-orange- red falling leaves, we used neutral colours accented with gold.

Keeping it real.- PJV

So It's The Scarf Season, I Say

Hooray! Here comes the days when I can wear jackets, sweaters, boots, and -- most definitely -- scarves! I'm glad the scarves we have in our Palamuti Shop are interestingly styled and are very comfortable to wrap around my neck. I always want scarves this way -- cushy and soft yet snazzy and original.

For this season, I wanted to switch between traditional styles and new ones. I have a beaded scarf Rosalina -- made from softest chiffon and lined with charming beads -- which I intend to wear on my upcoming evening parties specially during the Christmas season. Look below and see if you agree with my chosen pairs. I'm pretty sure my McDreamBoy is gonna be at one of those parties so I gotta make sure I have my ensemble up and ready.

At work, my scarves will have to be alluring. I have Hiraya scarf necklaces that goes well with my formal skirts and slacks. I know I'll be at my best during those meetings with execs or those make-or-break board presentations.

Now for some days I'm going with Mom on our shopping dates (because I trust Mom's taste more than anyone) or visiting the some of the clients off-work, my scarf look would be like the images below. My Balasang scarves mixed with boots, sweaters, and jackets look downright casually classy.

Then for those playfully simple days, I have Marichi Pashmina scarves here to accompany me in my goofy times with my girlfriends (see those beaded necklace accents? the girls will definitely love it). I like my clothes neutral so I can make these scarves pop from anyone's first sight.

So I think I got my wardrobe covered this season. Have you got yours ready too?